Lonesome
by That Kid with a Dumb Username
Summary: An older Barrel contemplates how he came to think of Shock as more than just a friend. Barrel/Shock. One-Shot.


**There's not a Barrel and Shock fic yet? I am apalled. I think I actually like them better than Lock and Shock. Ah well, if anyone else feels the same, I hope they like this fic. **And my apologies if Barrel and Shock are a little out of character. This is how I would imagine the older versions of them.** **

* * *

><p>Barrel sighed a long, sad sigh. Lock and Shock had disappeared together, yet again, it seemed. Somewhere along their years of friendship, and Barrel wasn't entirely sure where, but <em>somewhere,<em> he had found himself becoming less of a rebellious trick-or-treater and becoming more of an awkward, unwanted third wheel. He wasn't sure if Lock and Shock even meant to exclude him, but they had certainly been doing so.

He slumped down a little further along the wall he had propped himself against, eying his worn Halloween mask glumly in the moonlight. He wasn't stupid, as some people believed him to be, and he had heard the rumors. Whispers that Lock and Shock weren't just friends anymore. Mumbles that Shock had actually loved Lock all along. Hisses that Shock had openly returned her affections. It all did very little to lift Barrel's spirits.

The thought of Lock and Shock being together in _that way_ made Barrel hurt in a way that he hadn't felt before. Beneath his skin, inside his little, still a bit stumpy body, rather than on its tougher exterior. Because somewhere along their years of friendship, and Barrel wasn't entirely sure where, but _somewhere,_ he had begun to think of Shock as more than just a friend. He had begun to get a warm, fluttery feeling in the pit of his stomach whenever she was around, which he found that he enjoyed. He had begun to stammer and stumble over the simplest words when he tried to talk to her, which he didn't enjoy nearly as much. But worst of all, just for fun, he had begun to imagine what it would be like to be with her _that way,_ as more than just a simple fellow maker of mischief. What it would be like to have her come up to him and tell him that she liked him like that too. What it would be like to go creeping out at night with her like Lock had been lately. Maybe even what it would be like to touch her. But he rarely dared to be so bold as to imagine things like _that,_ considering that they would never ever happen and all.

"What are you doing out here?" a certain raspy voice that Barrel had memorized hissed out in the darkness.

Barrel gulped, the sound sending shivers down his spine. "N-nothing." There he went again, tripping over his words like tied laces.

_Smack!_ "Ow!" Barrel yelped, rubbing a hand over his cheek, "Shock, that hurt!"

"Don't lie to me!" Shock growled, her shadowed form stepping in front of him, placing her hands on her slim hips. The moon outlined her silhouette perfectly, and Barrel averted his eyes as Shock squinted down at him. He had honestly began to realize just how pretty he thought Shock was lately. He even liked her wild, wiry curls and her pointed nose. He especially liked how thin she had gotten as she had stretched taller over the years, and it was hard not to notice just how tall she was now as she loomed over her.

"I was just…thinking," Barrel said slowly, carefully choosing his words.

"Thinking?" she sneered, "Who has time for thinking anymore?"

"I-I guess I do?" Barrel suggested. Shock was rude, blunt, maybe even a little arrogant, but Barrel liked that. It made up for his own more shy nature that he had acquired as he grew.

_Smack!_ "Ow!" Barrel whimpered, clapping his hand over his cheek again, "Shock, stop that!"

"You weren't supposed to answer that," Shock shrugged, "And don't tell me what to do. You're not the boss of me."

"Okay," Barrel pinched his eyes shut, cradling his cheek and praying that he wouldn't make another error.

Shock continued, "So Lock and I just got back from scaring a scarecrow. It was really fun. We actually made him cry."

"That's…great," Barrel said sadly, trying not to let his heart crumble too much at the mention of Lock and Shock together. Was there honestly nothing more fascinating to discuss than their escapades?

_Smack!_ "Shock! What now?" Barrel cried out.

"Let me finish," Shock said simply, "What I was about to say is that after we scared him, I realized that scaring people and monsters isn't as fun with just Lock."

Barrel looked at her dumbfounded, "Really?"

Barrel quickly dodged Shock's hand, evading another slap. To his relief, Shock didn't try again. "Yes really, you twit! Why would I have said it if I didn't mean it?"

"I…I don't know," Barrel began to feel his heart pound a little faster with hope, his mouth lilting up into a small smile.

"Of course you don't. Now, do you want to go out scaring with me?" Shock asked.

Barrel asked skeptically, "What about Lock?"

"What about him?" Shock said.

"Will he be there too?" Barrel muttered.

"No. I'm tired of him for the night," Shock shrugged.

Barrel sputtered a little, completely taken aback, "B-but, don't you like him best?"

_Smack!_ Barrel hadn't seen that one coming at all, and he bit his lip to keep back a rather pathetic cry of pain. "Why would I like him best?" Shock snapped, looking mortally offended at the suggestion.

"I don't know!" Barrel exclaimed, "Everyone just says that you like him most!"

"How could I like him the most when there's you?" Shock demanded, fully exasperated with poor Barrel.

Barrel's eyes widened, "Wha…what do you mean?"

"I mean I already like you the most," Shock explained, irritation tinting her voice, "So how can I like him more than you when I like you the most?"

"You like me the most?" Barrel squeaked.

"Are you deaf, Barrel?" Shock shouted, "Or are you just more stupid than before? That's what I said, isn't it?"

"But why?" Barrel looked up at her, positively bewildered.

"Because you're more fun than Lock, you've got better ideas than him, and you're a lot cuter than him too," Shock ranted shamelessly, waving a hand idly as she spoke, "Now let's go scare some people. I'm tired of talking."

Blushing, Barrel stood to his feet. "Thank you," he mumbled shyly, "I…um, I like you better than Lock too."

Immediately, Barrel wanted to slap himself and swallow back down the less-thought-out words, but Shock merely scoffed, "I should hope so. I'm much better than him anyways."

She reached down and entangled her spidery fingers with his chubby ones, Barrel staring wide-eyed as she did. She quickly pecked her thin lips to his cheek, making Barrel sway a little, wondering if his heart had just imploded. In the happiest of ways, of course. "Now let's go," she hissed, "We don't have all night."


End file.
